Traditional tools used to move garden debris include shovels and rakes. The volume of debris which a gardener can pick up with a shovel is limited by the surface area of the blade and the friction between adjacent pieces of the debris. This makes shovels inappropriate for moving debris of low density. For instance, an ordinary shovel is of limited value for picking up leaves. A shovel can only support a small quantity of leaves. After picking up leaves with a shovel gravity or a slight breeze will cause the leaves to fall off before reaching the desired destination.
Rakes function well to move leaves across the ground but are of limited value for picking them up. A rake has the same limitations as a shovel for picking up leaves. Further, a rake is incapable of picking up fine debris. In fact, the rake is specifically designed to move leaves while leaving behind fine debris such as soil and pebbles. Thus, rakes are comprised of a multiplicity of slender blades, each separated by space to allow small debris to stay pass therethrough. Once a pile of leaves is collected, the gardener struggles to get all the debris into the disposal container. The gardener will usually use his hands or two rakes simultaneously to pick up the leaves, followed by a broom and a dust pan to pick up the remaining fine debris. Every person who has raked leaves has experienced this awkward process.
Modern attempts to improve the art have included engine driven blowers and rakes whose handles are attached. The blower only improves upon the rakes ability to move fine as well as coarse debris across the ground, but does not address the need to pick up, compress, and transfer the matter to a waste receptacle.
The double rake tool consists of two rakes whose handles are attached so that the rakes may be cooperatively used in a scissor-like manner to pick up leaves. This allows a gardener to pick up a relatively large volume of leaves. However, there are several problems with the double rake which limit its effectiveness. First, since the end of the tool which contacts the ground is a curved edge, as opposed to a straight edge, matter located adjacent to the central axis of the tool tends to fall outside the tool's reach and is therefore left behind. Second, fine matter falls through the spaces between the multiplicity of sticks which comprise the rake. Third, rakes employ flexible and lightweight blades, such as bamboo tines, which limit its ability to compress and compact debris.
Another tool is a small tong-like device used for picking up animal excrement. Like the double rake tool, the tong-like device is designed to selectively pick up matter of a particular size and consistency while leaving behind extraneous fine debris. The tong-like device is designed so that it is small enough to be used with one hand, making it convenient for its intended purpose, but limited in its capacity and its ability to compress and compact matter.